How a Cambria couple turned their 1980s home from a ‘cave’ into a bright, open space

The first time Dick and Diana Clark remodeled their Cambria home, it was a quick fix.

“We tried to bring it out of the 1980s,” said Diana Clark. So they ripped up mauve carpeting and removed the various patterns of wallpaper. As was all the rage in 1999, they had the walls painted a golden hue with a faux texture. The honey oak cabinets and trim stayed. “It kind of felt like a cave,” she said.

The second time around, they knew the entire 1980s-’90s decorating scheme had to go. A remodel of the 3,500-square-foot, four-level home yielded a cleaner, more contemporary look and a space primed for entertaining. At the helm was general contractor Paul Duston, design consultant Douglas Greenfield, and structural engineer Michel Kalin.

The primary focus of the remodel was the great room area: the kitchen, living room and dining room. Walls that set off each space were removed. The areas that were once the kitchen and dining room combined to form one enormous kitchen. White Shaker cabinetry by Personal Touch Woodworks and new windows above the cabinets added to the great room’s brighter, more open personality.

The flow from kitchen to living room was once disrupted by a bothersome step up from the kitchen to the dining and living areas. It was a regular spot for guests to trip, “a lot of times with a glass of red wine,” said Clark. Now, the entire great room sits on one level.

The new kitchen has an enormous island and a counter that seats four. Unwilling to have their new, hand-scraped wood flooring further distressed by chair legs, the couple opted for built-in stools that swivel on an arm, so that they tuck neatly under the countertop.

There was enough space for a butler’s pantry, which is tucked away out of sight. In addition to storage, it offers a place to stash pans and bowls to keep the kitchen looking tidy while entertaining.

The couple explored a few options for adding a wine cellar but decided not to dedicate an entire room to it. A Sub-Zero wine refrigerator was out of their budget range. So they found a significantly less expensive option at Costco. Now, twin wine refrigerators flank a cabinet designed for glass storage in their new dining room. The space occupies a seldom-used room addition just off the living room.

A new banquette offers casual seating, as well as a spot to view the surrounding wooded hillside. The custom-made banquette table is topped with a dark, earthy quartz — the same that is on the kitchen counters.

The Clarks’ style is transitional, mixing traditional and contemporary. They eliminated all faux painting in favor of a more modern color palette of mostly grays and whites. The kitchen is all clean lines, stainless steel and muted earth-tone tile.

Light fixtures are sculptural and bend toward contemporary. In the entryway, for instance, a dramatic black chandelier/fan looks as if it is topped with flickering candles — but they are actually LED versions.

Old World and traditional elements bridge the contemporary design of the house with the couple’s collection of antiques. Wrought iron appears frequently, even in the contemporary-styled light fixtures. The great room ceiling is lined in tongue-and-groove paneling. The one new piece of furniture — a living room sofa sectional — has both clean lines and traditional detailing such as nailhead trim.

The Clarks finished off their look with art and accents from their travels, including a silk area rug from India and a cabinet and tea set from China.

The remodel, which started out as a simple kitchen re-do, snowballed into a much larger project that included redesigns of two bathrooms and a media room. The anticipated three- to-four-month project turned into a yearlong undertaking that cost three times their original budget. Still, the couple is happy they went extra lengths to bring their home into the new millennium.

“It went from a cave to a happy, light and open home,” said Clark.

This story was originally published November 1, 2017 at 10:07 AM with the headline "How a Cambria couple turned their 1980s home from a ‘cave’ into a bright, open space."